The report said: “Demand has been constantly growing across all commodities markets for more than a decade. This has led to a general fall in stock-to-use ratios, in particular for agricultural and soft commodities.

“Without significant investments in new technologies, questions remain over the ability of current supply to satisfy growing demand in the long term.”

It continued: “The growth of emerging economies, in particular, of Chinese industrial consumption, lies behind the structural shift in prices.”

The report said the price of commodities was the result of complex factors, including product features such as quality and storability, supply and demand features such as capital intensity and average personal income, and external factors such as access to finance and public subsidies.

The report said: “In general, supply factors, such as capital intensity, are more important drivers of price formation for energy commodities and industrial metals, while agricultural and soft commodities markets are more influenced by demand factors, such as income growth, and exogenous factors that can cause supply shocks, such as weather events or government policies.”